The child gripped a soft medium-blue plush elephant tightly. She had a blanket made of velvety minky fabric locked under her arm. She was reluctant to release these gifts the nurses had given her during her stay in the hospital. After buckling Elizabeth into her new car seat with her treasures in hand and storing the bag with her other things in the trunk, Jamie couldn't help but plant a firm kiss on his wife's lips before he returned to the car and she climbed into the passenger seat beside him. Jamie had requested a few days of family time from his siblings to allow Elizabeth to become acclimated. Frank and Henry would be stopping by for dinner the following evening, but the rest of the family would need to wait for Sunday to see Elizabeth again. Her new cousins were beside themselves with excitement, but as challenging as the past few days had been for the little girl, they wanted to allow her time to adjust. Elizabeth was asleep almost as soon as they pulled out of the parking lot.
Sydney had seen enough. Hot tears of frustration fell down her cheeks. Her continued surveillance of Jamie and his family had become an obsession. She could feel herself slipping back into some unhealthy habits that had been a guiding force in bringing her back to the United States from England. Sydney took another long sip of her coffee drink to help her focus. She headed home to get some work done. If she was going to be ready when Jamie came calling again, she would need to practice some self care. Some considerable time would need to be devoted to her cases before her personal investigations had a negative impact on her job performance.
The new apartment was strange and unfamiliar to the little girl. She was hesitant to venture from either Eddie or Jamie's side. Eventually after putting on a movie they thought might appeal to her, she relaxed enough to let them get up off the couch. Once her new parents were not sitting next to her, she took a large blanket from the couch and placed it on the floor. Gathering it up into a nest like pile on the floor, she perched on top. Jamie decided to approach the child on her level. Grabbing a pillow off the couch he placed it on the floor next to her blanket nest. He laid on the floor next to her to watch The Little Mermaid. Eddie had gone into the bedroom to change into something comfortable. When she returned to the living room, she saw Jamie asleep on the floor next to Elizabeth. His hand was reaching out towards her and her small hand was wrapped around his pointer finger. Grabbing her phone she shot a few pictures, texting one to both Frank and Henry.
Sometime after 4pm the baby stirred. Waking up in unfamiliar surroundings, she looked around nervously. Still clutching the blue elephant in her hands, she started to explore. Eddie was watching her from the kitchen. As soon as the toddler began to walk around, she noticed Eddie smiling at her. Returning the smile, Elizabeth walked into the kitchen where Eddie was putting together some ingredients for a pasta dinner.
"Do you want a drink, Ellie girl? Eddie asked. She took one of the plastic spill free cups that they had bought the day before and filled it with some of the cucumber water that she and Jamie kept chilling in the fridge. The little girl accepted the cup eagerly and began to drink. Eddie peeled and sectioned a clementine placing it on a plastic plate. She sprinkled a few goldfish crackers on the plate as well. Here's a snack, peanut." Carrying the plate to the table, Elizabeth followed her with her eyes. Eddie pulled the booster chair they had bought away from the table.
When the child walked over, Eddie lifted her up and sat her down on it, pushing her up to the table where the snack was within her reach. Elizabeth eagerly ate a few bites of the orange and a few crackers. When the little girl appeared bored with the food, rather than take it away, Eddie pushed it to the side slightly and produced a mess free coloring book and markers. Elizabeth seemed to have no idea what to do with them. Eddie demonstrated how the markers worked on the paper for the little girl then handed Elizabeth the marker. Ellie was mystified by the result. Happily scribbling on the paper, Ellie sat and colored for 20 minutes. As she drew, absentmindedly she popped the rest of the orange segments in her mouth. It was with a great sense of satisfaction that Eddie was able to write it down in the food journal they were maintaining for the little girl, at the advice of the pediatrician who had attended to her in the hospital. Elizabeth was quite small for her age, but otherwise developmentally on track. Eddie was determined to help her growth progress despite whatever habits had been developed before.
Jamie woke up and rose from his place on the floor, joining the girls at the table. "How about a walk, girls?"
Eddie went into the bedroom while Jamie put the extremely sparkly sneakers back on the little girl's feet. He got a kick out of the fact that Elizabeth was clearly enamored with her new shoes. If experience was any indicator, Jamie was quite sure that there were several other pairs waiting for her to try in the other room courtesy of Eddie. After Eddie changed, the three of them put the leash on the dog and walked into the garage to find the new stroller that their friends from the 2-9 had purchased for them. Eddie was shocked at how generous they had been. They strapped Elizabeth in and headed out to the park.